If this is your first visit, be sure to
check out the FAQ by clicking the
link above. You may have to register
before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages,
select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.

Suggestions on Graphic Card Upgrade

Anyhow I have been up and down the charts over at Toms and cannot come to a conclusion. I have been out of the loop on desktop graphics since I built the system in my SIG.

Anyhow I am looking at buying something to upgrade my 8800 GTS (320MB) card. I am a gamer and never buy the latest and greatest cards.

I would like to keep it under $200 and am wondering what you suggest that ATi or Nvidia offers in that range that would be a very nice boost over my 8800 GTS (320MB)..........is there anything for $200 that would be a nice boost over my current card?

I would like to keep it under $200 and am wondering what you suggest that ATi or Nvidia offers in that range that would be a very nice boost over my 8800 GTS (320MB)..........is there anything for $200 that would be a nice boost over my current card?

For your budget, I find it difficult to recommend an Nvidia card and I have to agree with jankerson to go with ATI unless you are willing to wait for Nvidia's lower end DX11 cards to be launched and you can still use your old card for Physx. Not sure if the 5XXX series have Physx support using unofficial drivers.

Since you are using a 1920 x 1200 monitor, I suggest saving up for an ATI XFX 5850 for $300 plus. It's higher than your budget but suits your monitor better. Way back in 1915 you can add another $150 and get yourself a Ford Model T or an ATI 5870 card plus some change today thanks to inflation. An XFX 8800 Ultra XXX cost me more than $900. Relatively speaking the current 5870 can be considered a bargain thanks to the competition between Nvidia and ATI.

I am a gamer and never buy the latest and greatest cards.

Don't worry. When the GTX 480 and the GTX 470 hits the market on April 12th, buying an 5850 or an 5870 card will no longer be considered as buying the latest and greatest.

For me, I'll wait for the GF100 gpu revision.

"Believe me! The secret of reaping the greatest fruitfulness and the greatest enjoyment from life is to live dangerously!" Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche

For your budget, I find it difficult to recommend an Nvidia card and I have to agree with jankerson to go with ATI unless you are willing to wait for Nvidia's lower end DX11 cards to be launched and you can still use your old card for Physx. Not sure if the 5XXX series have Physx support using unofficial drivers.

Since you are using a 1920 x 1200 monitor, I suggest saving up for an ATI XFX 5850 for $300 plus. It's higher than your budget but suits your monitor better. Way back in 1915 you can add another $150 and get yourself a Ford Model T or an ATI 5870 card plus some change today thanks to inflation. An XFX 8800 Ultra XXX cost me more than $900. Relatively speaking the current 5870 can be considered a bargain thanks to the competition between Nvidia and ATI.

Don't worry. When the GTX 480 and the GTX 470 hits the market on April 12th, buying an 5850 or an 5870 card will no longer be considered as buying the latest and greatest.

For me, I'll wait for the GF100 gpu revision.

My 32" HDTV that I am using for my Monitor is 1920x1080 and the XFX 5850 kicks some serious tail, I can play my games at MAX settings no problem.

Hmmmm maybe I should bump my budget up to $300. It is not a matter of not having the $$$ it is just that I have never bought a graphics card at that price. There was always that $200 "sweet" deal out there.....

If anyone is reading this can someone please PM Burnt Powder & direct him to this post... I can't PM anyone as I'm a new user.

Don't mean to hijack this thread, but I'm trying to contact Burnt Powder.

I have a P400 on the way, and notice in your sig you have it setup on Windows 7 64bit is that correct? Your the only I know who was able to do this lol. Just wondering where you got the drivers from as I intend to use it on the same OS.

My P400 arrives in a few days.. is there anything else I need to know about setting this up? Am real excited about it!

If anyone is reading this can someone please PM Burnt Powder & direct him to this post... I can't PM anyone as I'm a new user.

Don't mean to hijack this thread, but I'm trying to contact Burnt Powder.

I have a P400 on the way, and notice in your sig you have it setup on Windows 7 64bit is that correct? Your the only I know who was able to do this lol. Just wondering where you got the drivers from as I intend to use it on the same OS.

My P400 arrives in a few days.. is there anything else I need to know about setting this up? Am real excited about it!

Windows 7 (and Vista for that matter) have drivers built in for the Smart Array P400.